CNN "State of the Union" - Transcript: Interview with Hakeem Jeffries

Interview

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REP. HAKEEM JEFFRIES (D-NY): Well, January 6, was a violent Capitol insurrection. It was an attack on the Capitol, the Congress and the Constitution.

You had individuals, a violent mob, who were there to assassinate Speaker Pelosi, hang Mike Pence, hunt down members of Congress, stop us from undertaking our constitutional responsibilities. Officers died as a result of the events that occurred that fateful day.

More than 140 officers who were defending the Capitol were seriously injured, some permanently. And so we clearly have to get to the bottom of what happened, why it happened, and how do we prevent something like that from ever happening again?

We're going to reevaluate what the way forward is in the next few days. We have a caucus meeting on Tuesday. I look forward to hearing from the speaker, as well as the members, as to what comes next.

TAPPER: The Texas Senate just passed this morning sweeping new voting restrictions, a bill to ban drive-through voting, new rules for how judges can overturn elections.

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer says he's going to bring up Democrats' sweeping voting rights legislation for a vote next month, but there are not 60 votes to pass it. So, what are you going to do and what's your reaction to the Texas law?

JEFFRIES: Well, the Texas law is shameful.

And Republicans, clearly, in Texas and throughout the country want to make it harder to vote and easier to steal an election. That is the only way that I can interpret the voter suppression epidemic that we see working its way from one state, Georgia, to Arizona, to Texas, and all across the country in so many different ways.

[09:50:15]

Fundamental to our democracy is the right to vote, self-government, that the American people get to decide and work for a democracy that reflects the voices of all Americans, not just a certain segment, not just conservatives, not just Republicans, not just people in certain parts of the country, all Americans.

And so I support the effort to move H.R.1, the For the People Act, which will bring to life democracy reform in a meaningful way. We will have to see what occurs in the Senate in terms of whether they can get to the 60-vote threshold. And the Senate is going to have some decisions to make in terms of reviewing their arcane procedures that traditionally have been used to uphold institutions like slavery and Jim Crow.

TAPPER: So, to translate for people at home, Congressman Jeffries opposes the filibuster, and he's hoping there can be filibuster reform.

So let me ask you another issue, sir, because four of your fellow House Democrats this week, Josh Gottheimer, Elaine Luria, Kathy Manning, and Dean Phillips, wrote a letter to President Biden condemning Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene, the Republican of Georgia, for her Holocaust belittling.

But they also said this in the letter -- quote -- "We also reject comments from members of Congress accusing Israel of being an apartheid state and committing acts of terrorism. These statements are anti-Semitic at their core and contribute to a climate that is hostile to many Jews."

Now, we have seen attacks on Jewish Americans coming not from the right, but from the left, physical attacks, confrontations in New York and Los Angeles and elsewhere. And those four Democrats are specifically talking about comments by other fellow House Democrats such as Rashida Tlaib.

Do you agree with them that the language that some of these members of the Squad, some House Democrats use about Israel is anti-Semitic and leads to a climate of hostility against American Jews?

JEFFRIES: Well, I haven't seen the precise letter. And I do look forward to talking to my colleagues.

I think their concern as it relates to rising anti-Semitism and the hateful incidents that we have seen directed against Jews here in New York City and across the country is unacceptable, untolerable, un- American, unconscionable, and it's got to stop.

And all of us need to raise our voices in that regard. We have seen a rise in anti-Semitism over the last few years, in xenophobia, in anti- immigrant sentiment, anti-Asian hate, a rise in hate crimes directed against African-Americans. And so we have got to deal with it.

But, specifically, the troubling rise of anti-Semitic instances in the aftermath of the recent conflict in the Middle East has to be crushed with the fierce urgency of now. And I call upon all of us, not as Democrats or Americans or House members or senators, or Democrats or Republicans, all of us, to speak up against anti-Semitic hate. TAPPER: Lastly, sir, congressmen missed President Biden's May 25

deadline to pass police reforming legislation on the anniversary of George Floyd's death.

But House and Senate negotiators, including your colleague Karen Bass, say they're making progress. House Majority Whip James Clyburn said he will accept whatever deal negotiators reach, even if it does not change qualified immunity for police. Do you feel the same way?

JEFFRIES: Well, I want to look at the totality of what is agreed upon ultimately. And Karen Bass, who's our lead negotiator in the House, is doing a tremendous job, working closely with Senator Booker and Senator Tim Scott.

Listen, the overwhelming majority of officers that I interact with here at home are hardworking individuals who are in the community to protect and serve. But it is clear as day that we have a police violence problem, a police brutality problem, a problem with the police use of excessive force that we have to deal with in a comprehensive way.

The House has passed the George Floyd Justice in Policing Act twice. It is the most transformational police reform bill ever to pass a single house of Congress.

And I think that Senator Tim Scott seems to be negotiating in good faith. Qualified immunity is a problematic doctrine. It does need to be reformed. It is a block on accountability for officers who clearly violate someone's civil rights, by being held to a standard of the least reasonable officer on the force. That is not an acceptable standard, when you can take someone's life and liberty.

So, let's evaluate the totality of the package, Jake, before making any decision as to whether we will support it or not.

TAPPER: All right, Congressman Hakeem Jeffries of New York, hope you have a peaceful and meaningful Memorial Day tomorrow, sir.

Thanks for joining us today.

[09:55:00]

JEFFRIES: Thank you, Jake. You too.

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